


...And Throw Away the Key

by borgmama1of5



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-06
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-08-19 20:32:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8223914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/borgmama1of5/pseuds/borgmama1of5
Summary: Missing scene for 11.22--In the middle of the battle with Amara, Chuck drops the bombshell that Sam will be the new bearer of the Mark. As Dean starts to protest, Sam says, "God and I talked about this." I needed to hear that conversation.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my beta sandymg for being so quick.

"Sam, we need to talk."

Sam knew his flinch at the sound of Chuck's impassive voice was obvious--he hadn't expected anyone else to be up in the bunker so late. He hated how the feeling of safety he'd developed being surrounded by the Men of Letters wardings had been erased by the presence of Lucifer inside these walls. Chuck had off-handedly said Lucifer couldn't hurt them now, but it was hard to be comforted by that when who knew how long Chuck would be sticking around.

And every time Lucifer's inflections came out of Cas' mouth Sam's skin crawled with the memories...

Dean had asked Chuck why He'd abandoned humanity...Sam wanted to know why He'd abandoned the Winchesters...abandoned him...but there was no way Sam was going to ask that. H was afraid of what the answer would be.

Now, perversely enough, it seemed like God wanted to chat with him. "Uh, yeah, sure."

Sam eased around the map table and pulled out the chair across from Chuck. Sitting at right angles to God just felt too...intimate. As soon as he was sitting, however, Sam realized he'd never gotten the drink that had been the reason for him coming out of his room. He started to get up. "I, uh, just want to get..."

Chuck waved his fingers without lifting his hand from the table and a beer appeared in front of Sam.

"T-thanks..."

A faint tick from one of the bunker clocks was all that could be heard while Sam awkwardly took a swallow.

“We need to talk about what happens after the Darkness is back in her cage.”

Sam nodded, eyes stuck on Chuck’s magical fingers, unable to meet that inhumanly intense blue gaze. Chuck continued directly to the problem.

“I can lock her in…but there needs to be someone to bear the key.”

Sam’s muscles clenched. His words came out barely a whisper. “The Mark.” Sam immediately knew what couldn’t happen. He met Chuck’s gaze fiercely and raised his voice. “Not Dean. You can’t put the Mark back on him.” Sam’s heart pounded because how could he fight God about this? Chuck’s fingers brushed the smooth tabletop as he brought his hands together, fingers entwined and resting gently as he straightened his posture and shifted his entire body forward. Chuck’s words, when they came, were slow and measured. 

“Unfortunately, Sam, no one who’s worn the Mark already can bear it again—not Dean, not Lucifer, not even Cain if he were still around. They are too damaged to contain it a second time. It has to be someone new.”

Chuck’s eyes burned steadily into Sam’s.

The sudden pit in Sam’s stomach was familiar. “Me. Then it has to be me.”

“I’m not saying it has to be you, Sam…we could ask for volunteers. In fact, I’m pretty sure there are others who would be quite willing take it on for the power it will give them. I’m not sure that’s the best idea for the planet…”

“No, it has to be me. It’s my fault the Darkness was freed in the first place. It’s my place to be part of the solution.”

“For what it’s worth, I am sorry..” The sadness in Chuck’s eyes as he said that felt like an absolution. Sam took another swig from his bottle to buy time to shove down the tendrils of despair that were rising inside him.

“Okay…I saw what the Mark did to Dean, how it changed him. It’s gonna have the same effect on me… so…what can I do to protect the world from me after I have it? How…” 

Wait, maybe there was a solution.

“Death was going to throw Dean someplace where he couldn’t hurt anyone. Can you do that for me? Give me the Mark and then put me somewhere far away, safe, where I can’t hurt anyone if…when…the Mark takes me over?”

Chuck simply stared at Sam silently. It was unnerving, but Sam had to know if there was a way to keep humanity…and Dean…safe from him.

Finally Chuck conceded. “I suppose that is possible, Sam. But is that what you really want?”

“Yes.” Sam would not let himself doubt that was the necessary course of action.

“What about your brother? I’m not seeing him as going along with that idea.”

“He’ll have to. We’ve chosen each other over the world too many times. He gets it now, he has to.”

“You’re sure about that?”

No. But. Sam shook his head. “It’ll be hard but he’ll see it, this is the best way. He, of anyone, will know why…What the Mark did to him, how there’s no way to win against it. He’ll have to let me do this.”

Chuck nodded and pursed his lips. “He’s not going to be happy with me. You’re going to have to explain it to him.”

Sam bit his lip. “I will…I will…just…not yet. Let’s let him have a win first and then I’ll…” Sam stopped.

“No.” He stared Chuck—God—straight in the eye. “No. This is what you’re going to do. You lock her up and you put the Mark on me and you throw me into wherever as soon as you get it on me. I’m not going to give Dean time to think about it and try to come up with another way when there isn’t one. Because there isn’t?”

Sam locked down his emotions when Chuck didn’t bother answering his grasping-at-straws question. 

“It’s not instantaneous, Sam. Dean’s going to see what’s happening when I transfer the key to you.”

“So I’ll tell him…I’ll tell him what I said to him when the Mark was corrupting him, that he’ll keep me safe until he has to lock me up when I can’t control it. He’ll buy that long enough for you to finish the job. And when I’m gone, yeah, he’ll be pissed at you…” Sam raised his chin and dared Chuck to contradict him. “Like a lot of people are pissed at you and it doesn’t matter because you’re God and you can do what you want.”

Chuck’s lips twitched in a sad smile. “You’re right about that, Sam.”

Sam needed to be alone. He gulped the last of his beer and stood. “I’m gonna try and get a little sleep before the big day. Goodnight.”

Chuck slid his chair back and rose as well. “Yes. We should all be well-rested for tomorrow’s—well, later today’s, fight.”

Sam started to walk away but stopped as Chuck continued talking.

“I just want to say, Sam, that you’ve done well, considering how the deck was stacked against you—all of you—from the beginning. You’ve made a few bone-headed choices, but on the main, you were always trying to do the right thing, sometimes when there really wasn’t a right thing to do. You and your brother, you weren’t supposed to have it easy, and I’m sorry for that, but, well, someone has to be the hero…It’s just that most stories leave out the truth that being the hero sucks.” A pause, a faint sigh, then, “Goodnight, Sam.”

Sam swallowed and shut his eyes against the tears that abruptly welled up. “Thanks,” he murmured when he could speak again. But Chuck was already gone.


End file.
